China's presence rises amid early-stage ADC candidate deals

AimedBio and SMC host 3rd ADC Conference

Clinial trials on topo I payloads gain traction following Enhertu’s success

Chinese firms expand global deals… research ongoing on various targets, including B7, Nectin-4

With competition in the antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) market intensifying, global deal trends are undergoing a clear shift.

 

Transactions are now more active in the preclinical and early clinical stages, rather than in late-stage candidates, with collaborations between global pharma and Chinese companies standing out.

 

Since the success of Enhertu, topoisomerase I (Topo I) payloads have effectively become the dominant approach.

 

On the 29th, AimedBio and Samsung Medical Center held the 3rd ADC Conference at the hospital’s main auditorium, where AimedBio Chairman Nam-Gu Her highlighted recent changes in the ADC industry landscape.

 

ADC therapies are novel anticancer drugs that link an antibody that is designed to bind a specific antigen on the surface of cancer cells with a cytotoxic payload through a linker.

 

This design allows the drug to selectively target cancer cells, enhancing efficacy while minimizing adverse effects.

 

According to Her, the ADC market has seen explosive growth since the launch of Enhertu in 2019.

 

Over the past 5 years, deals worth USD 390 billion (KRW 540 trillion) have been completed, with more than 300 clinical trials initiated.

 

The ADC Deal Boom and Trials

Enhertu is a next-generation ADC composed of a monoclonal antibody that has the same structure as trastuzumab, which binds to receptors overexpressed on cancer cells and a highly potent Topo I inhibitor payload, linked via a tumor-selective cleavable linker.

 

In a head-to-head study, Enhertu nearly doubled progression-free survival (PFS) compared to Kadcyla, which uses the same trastuzumab backbone but with a microtubule inhibitor payload.

 

“Most companies are now developing ADCs with Topo I inhibitor payloads.

 

In addition to Enhertu, Datroway, and Trodelvy are such examples,” said Her.

 

In the past 5 years alone, 59 deals have been struck involving Topo I payloads, far outpacing tubulin inhibitors (28), degraders (11), immunomodulators (8), and DNA-damaging agents (5).

 

Heo also noted that licensing dynamics have shifted.

 

Historically, big deals centered on acquiring late-stage or commercial products.

 

Today, however, activity has increased around preclinical candidates.

 

High-profile examples made in the past include AstraZeneca’s partnerships on Enhertu and Datroway, AbbVie’s acquisition of Elahere, and Pfizer’s acquisition of Adcetris.

 

However, nowadays, the same big pharma are actively scouting promising preclinical ADC assets.

 

In the ADC payload development landscape, the use of topoisomerase I inhibitors has surged explosively.

“The traditional deal trend was to acquire products rather than platforms.

 

While deal sizes have decreased recently, interest in ADCs has not waned,” Her explained.

 

“With many leading candidates already acquired or commercialized, transactions are now focusing on early-stage pipelines.” Chinese pharmaceutical companies are playing an increasingly prominent role.

 

Technology exports from China surged from 55 cases in 2015 to over 300 in 2021, and recorded 213 last year.

 

For instance, in 2022, MSD secured global rights to the TROP2 ADC sacituzumab tirumotecan from Kelun-Biotech for USD 1.41 billion.

 

Last year, GSK obtained global rights to a B7-H3-targeting ADC from Hansoh Pharma.

 

“The mainstream deal trend nowadays is acquiring on preclinical candidates through small-scale transactions.

 

Global big pharma’s interest in Chinese firms is growing rapidly, reflecting China’s strengthened competitiveness in the ADC development scene.”